Dangerous Streets
by Ronta Iga Dorolezhevas
Summary: AU He is a merciless yakuza, she is in search of a revenge. They both are children of the night, and they are now together against the rising threat of Akatoki clan. Love, revenge, family. What this world is hiding in the dangerous streets? KyokoxRen
1. Chapter 1

**Hello everyone! I am starting a new story (not that i have finished my previous one, but anyway) I suddenly got this idea, not even sure from where, but I hope you will enjoy it, so this is an AU story, and characters are quite different from what they are in manga and anime. I have written an account for each of them, if you feel that you don't understand what is happening, please say so ( review so ) and i will publish it as soon as somebody asks for it. Enjoy!) please R &R. I really want to know what you think about this (criticism welcomed) :)**

It was a dark, quiet and empty street in a not so good neighborhood. People knew better then to go outside after the dusk. Too many wrongdoers roamed the streets. You would be lucky if they only robbed you. What was worse is that almost none of the criminals here were a part of an organized crime groups. Most of them were just junkies, robbing for a fix, raping for the fun of so and killing accidently out of fear and being unable to handle weapon properly. Police didn't want to intervene as most cases were going into nowhere. The culprit would often die soon enough on its own. Be it from an overdose or another Junkie killing for a fix.

Kyoko was sitting in the living room, waiting for Sho to turn up. She was his bodyguard for almost as long as she could remember but lately he has refused to go accompanied by her. He said he didn't want to put her in danger and that he could deal perfectly well on his own. So Kyoko stayed at the house, cooked, cleaned, washed and ironed the clothes – did all the house duties why Sho was out.

He had mentioned a few times, that he found a big group, who would take him in, if he wanted to join, and that he was currently working under them to prove that he - as an heir of Fuwa group was worth of a higher position, than just a henchman. Kyoko has supported him wholeheartedly. She praised his leadership skills, although to be fair they were not that good, though still better than his negotiating skills that obviously lacked. She had to deal with all of the angry men who were annoyed by him after the meetings _. I guess he has his faults, but he is born to be a leader, it's probably just lack of experience not his skills._ Kyoko has always believed in him, unlike his parents.

She remembered Shoutarou's parents. They were strong leaders. Fuwa group has reached its peak under their rule, they fully controlled Kyoto region. She was immensely grateful to them for taking her in after the death of her father and her mother's escape. She was left alone, but they raised her into a fine young lady, trained her into a strong member of a group, and would gladly accept her as their daughter in law in future. Kyoko loved them, but she also loved Sho. His parents didn't understand him at all. They were truly suffocating their son to the point where he had to run away. _How could they tell their own son that he wasn't supposed to take part in the group's dealings? Why they didn't let him try himself out in real life?_ He is an heir after all! So she agreed to run away with him, to protect the future heir and to stay with her fiancée.

What Kyoko didn't know is that Fuwa came up with this sweet story of a poor son who wanted to work hard, but was stopped by his parents. In reality Shoutaro has started selling drugs on Fuwa's territory behind his parents' backs. When his dealings were found out, his parents were furious. They told him to stop, but their son would not listen. Sho ran away to Tokyo to continue his dealings there. After all his life principle was that money justified the means, so he wasn't bothered by leaving his home, possibly ruining Kyoko's future or selling the drugs and doing even worse things, but Kyoko didn't have to know that.

She heard the door opening and smiled. _Sho is back!_ Kyoko hurried to welcome him back home. He came in throwing of his street shoes and putting his coat on a hook. His baggy jeans were torn in a few places, his shirt had bloodspots, but other than that he seemed to be unscratched.

"Hey, Kyoko, I'm back! Have you prepared the dinner?" He asked in a demanding way, not caring too greet her properly.

She gradually turned into a burden to him, over the past few months of their stay in Tokyo. It was getting harder to hide what he was doing from her, so she told her to stay at home. Unfortunately that meant that he had to stay home as well – at least for some nights. He didn't want to. Sho quickly earned respect from Akatoki group, and earned a higher position effortlessly. The women that worked under the group were always eager for him – young, handsome, with a good position and wealthy. They were beautiful, and what's more important – they never hesitated to give him what he wanted, when he wanted. In that sense Kyoko was absolutely useless. Too dull, too traditional, too difficult to bother with.

"Hello, Sho!" she replied enthusiastically "Of course I have, would you like to have a bath beforehand? Your day must have been tiring? Poor you, working so hard" she continued pestering him with questions. Although Sho saw her as a burden, he was still very much satisfied with such attention and a good service, she provided to him. _After all it's been a damn good decision to take her with me. Now I have a personal maid, whom I don't have to pay. Damn convenient._ He smiled smugly at his thoughts.

"Yeah, I'll go to bath first, the day has been tiring" he then put down his pistol, picked a change of clothes and went to the bathroom, putting his dirty clothes into laundry basket just outside the bathroom door.

Kyoko knew her drill, so she picked the basket, sorted the clothes and was going to throw them into washing machine, when she remembered that she hasn't checked the pockets. _How silly of me! If I forgot the machine could have broken!_ She proceeded with looking through pockets, finding nothing, until she picked his jeans. She felt a small plastic bag inside and a piece of paper. _He always stuffs bills and chocolate wrappings in his pockets._ Kyoko smiled at this thought. Some things just never change, or so she thought. When she took out the supposed "rubbish" and looked at it she was confused _. Pills? Why would he have pills in his pocket? Is he ill? Is he trying to hide it from me? What if he is slowly dying?!_ Kyoko was panicking; horrifying thought flew through her head. Wait there is a paper; maybe it's his prescription. She unfolded the piece of paper and stared at it, greedily reading into the words scribbled onto it. When she realized what it was Kyoko was horrified, hurt, not believing, feeling betrayed, angry, and furious. _How could he!?_ She crumpled and dropped the piece of paper onto the floor and ran into her room to quickly pack her things. While throwing in anything and everything she could find, Kyoko made sure to carefully wrap corn and put him safely in a special zip pocket of the bag. While doing all of this she hadn't heard Sho coming out of the bathroom.

"Kyoko, I'm done, where is the food?" His voice came from the kitchen. _Food!_ She thought angrily. _This bastard wants food! He will get it then._ The angry girl stormed into the kitchen, ready to shove the fucking food straight up the bastard's ass.

"You, How could you do this!? Are you fucking out of your mind?!" she screamed at him, glaring daggers, looking ready to kill him.

"What the fuck are you talking about? I am hungry, Give me the damn food!" He demanded, sounding very annoyed. What the hell is wrong with her? _Has she forgotten where her place is?_ He didn't even turn around to properly acknowledge her. And that was his mistake.

"Oh, you know fucking well what I am talking about. You are selling drugs! Drugs, Shoutaro!" Her voice was shaking from anger, her hands clenched in fists. "It's not a freaking game, how many lives do you think you are ruining!" she glared at the back of his head "And you know what's worse? You are working for the fucking bastards – Akatoki group! They killed my father, they tried to steal your family's territory, and you are fucking working for them!" She screamed at him accusingly, unable to control her anger at him, eyes tearing from disappointment in her best companion throughout her life. "You want your fucking food, well here it is!" She took out the bowl with salad and before he could turn she threw it at his head. It smashed into pieces, covering the man in the vegetables and knocking him out.

"Serves you right" Kyoko spat at him "Go to hell!" She said mercilessly, went to pick her previously packed bag and left into the night.

On the other side of the city two men were sitting in the comfortable leather armchairs, on the top floor of one of the skyscrapers that Takarada group owned. The view of night Tokyo was fantastic, the thought of how much money they were earning right now on the dark, dangerous streets even better. The room was luxurious. Dark green walls, oak laid floors, the exquisite chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. It all created a nice atmosphere for the relaxed discussion.

Tsuruga Ren set opposite his boss, sipping whiskey from crystal glass. It was one of the only few places where he could afford to let his guard down. He knew Lory Takarada probably for almost for the whole of his life, for the whole of his conscious life – for sure. The man was a bit eccentric, but nevertheless very professional when it came down to real business. Today though he came not to chat to his grandfather, but to obtain permission from the boss of the group to deal with the junkies in one of the parts of their territory. The damn bastards started distributing drugs for Akatoki group. He had to deal with it – the sooner the better, but as his boss didn't like violence, Ren had to confirm the plan with him directly, before acting.

"Ren, to what do I owe such a pleasure of seeing you again?" Takarada asked happily, knowing full well that this boy would almost never come to him without a good reason, especially on his own will.

"Akatoki group" He was brief in his reply. Young man sipped more whiskey and took out a cigarrete. "Do you mind?" Ren asked, ready to light it. Of course Takarada didn't mind, but manners and respect for a boss of the group prevailed.

"When I was your age, I didn't smoke" was his short reply, but he still nodded as if telling Ren to proceed. The small fire from a lighter glowed for a few seconds, and then the man opposite him exhaled a cloud of smoke.

"Nerves" was all he said to justify his addiction.

"Ah yes, the stress of working in a criminal world!" He exclaimed jokingly "But you know what?" He leaned in closer to whisper as if it was top-secret information "There are other ways to release some tension other than drinking and smoking." He grinned at his godson and continued "try having a woman, might help you" he winked at him and started laughing at the man across him, who was now looking quite annoyed.

"You know better than me, that for people in our position there is no problem with that, but if you would like to know, than I must say that I am fully satisfied" he answered glaring at the older companion and released more smoke into the air.

"I'm not talking about having a woman sexually," he said in a more serious voice.

"Huh" Ren was confused. _How else can a woman help to relax?_ "What do you mean?"

"A permanent lover, a girlfriend, even better a wife" Lory said.

"Don't even start with me…" he tried to interrupt Lory, but unsuccessfully.

"Stupid boy! Don't underestimate the power of love!" Takarada exclaimed excitedly, almost angry. Ren recognized that he was going into his LoveRulesTheWorld mode. He ignored his long, boring, ridiculous speech. "Are you even listening to me?"

"No" another short reply followed.

"Ah" The older man sighed heavily "Ok, I can just hope that one day you will understand what I mean. Anyway, what's up with Akatoki group again?" He calmed down and got into his business mode.

"They are trying to spread pills, coke and heroin on our territory"

"And you need to talk to me because…" His godson was a fool in love matters, but one of the best when it came to business; he was surprised that he needed advise from anyone on anything.

"You hate it when we have to take serious action. As far as I plan there might be a few casualties tonight. Junkies. No families, no friends, nothing."

"You have my permission" Lory was always trying to put the deaths to minimum, but when it came to drugs and Akatoki he was merciless. "Do what you think is right" Takarada was sure that Ren knew what to do.

"Understood" He finished his whiskey, put out his cigarette and left into the night.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hello everyone! I updated it! Wow! I mean I have a bad tendency to not update stories for a long time, but looks like I am changing this bad habit of mine. Anyway, this chapter is a bit … violent? WARNING: violence and blood, also don't forget that the story is AU and OOC. I hope you like it. Please read and review**

 **P.S. For the devoted reviewer guest, whose reviews didn't go up. I don't know why the don't show on this story, but I received all 3 of them in private messaging – Thank you very much for them)**

Kyoko ran out of the door onto a poorly lit street. She didn't know where to go or what to do; the only thing she knew is that she would never forgive Shoutaro. After running for some time, she finally calmed down and stopped to see where she was. _It's too dark here. I can't even see the street name. Where do I go now, I have no one here and going back to Kyoto without money will be difficult._ She just continued walking, hoping to find a motel, a park, a bench – something where she could stay for the night. Lost in her thoughts she didn't notice people walking behind her. When she heard their steps and tried to turn it was too late, somebody grabbed her from behind and held still. She felt the stench of rotting food and alcohol coming from whoever the person was.

"Hey, girly!" The drunken raspy voice came from behind her, blowing hot, putrid air into her ear" I was waiting for ya! Give some fun time to the old fellas here." She saw the second man coming to face her front. He was in old disheveled clothes, with long greasy hair sticking to his forehead. He was tall and scrawny, the veins on his hands were popping out and multiple bruises covered the inside of his arm _Heroin addict, just my luck._ Kyoko tried to think of an escape plan, but the first man held her too strongly. She couldn't get away by force.

"We'll even share some good stuff with ya. Ya know what I mean" She was disgusted at the thought of drugs, she was disgusted by this hideous men, who held her and wanted to rape her, but she knew better than to show it.

"Well, boys, how can we have fun if you ain't letting go of me? You know I wanna join in actively". She said sweetly, looking at the guy in front of her.

"Oi, Jack, I thing we found just a right one." He let her go, and started walking towards one of the smaller streets "Follow us girlie, don't do anything funny, we will catch ya anyway" She knew he was right. With this big bag she was immobile, they would easily catch her if they wanted, but Kyoko had already thought of a good enough plan.

"Sure, ain't gonna miss the party of my life." She picked her bag and went after them.

Ren walked out of the building and lit another cigarrete. He glanced at his silver wristwatch to see the time – 2:01 _everyone should be in their positions by now._ Just when he thought about that, a bulky man came to him and bowed.

"Your car is ready Tsuruga-sama. Would you like to go now?" The man informed him and straightened up. He had slightly longish jeans on; his feet were clad in crocodile black leather boots. With the big leather jacket finishing his outfit he looked like a gangster from bad 90's movies. _The new ones always dress ridiculously._ Ren thought and threw his cigarrete on the ground, stepping on it.

"Let's go then" they both went to the black Gelandewagen and drove to the place of tonight's "party".

After a few minutes of walking they came to the river, and then slipped into the docks area through a hole in the fence. The whole place stunk of rotting fish. _Now I know why they smell so bad._ Kyoko thought with a smile. She would get out of here soon enough she hoped. After all having this smell stuck to her clothes was a good enough reason to justify her plan. They went into one of the storage houses. Inside it was fairly warm, the place was dimly lightened by a few bonfires, made by homeless people living here. One of the men stopped and exchanged a few words with somebody in the darker part of the room. After a few minutes, more men came out. They were dressed much better and didn't stink. Their faces were cleanly shaved and the strangers didn't look like junkies. _What is happening?_ She was alarmed by the sudden appearance of the new people.

"Is that the girl you were talking about?" The man who was standing in front of the newly arrived group asked Jack and the other stinky guy.

"Yes sir! Good enough for Akatoki?" He asked pleasantly "She'd make a good whore, just look at her, she even came here on her own will!" _He is trying to sell me_ _to gangsters as a prostitute!_ She now had to deal with more people; the escape wouldn't be as easy as she thought. _But why would these druggies cooperate with the criminal groups?_

"She looks alright" The man confirmed, then turned to face the others from the group. "Hey, Yoshi, bring them their fix, they earned it, and on your way spread some stuff to dealers in here, it's all in the car!" he shouted at someone at the back. The Yoshi man just nodded and went to do as told. _Could have guessed why they did it_. The addiction to drugs has now disgusted her even more. People turned into animals, worthless pieces of trash for this stuff. She hated it. But her thoughts were interrupted by the commanding voice.

"Hey, you, move! You are ours now!" _Akatoki bastards_ she thought _I'd rather die than follow you anywhere._ She put her bag onto the floor, unzipped it and took out her precious present from father. _The perfect occasion to use them._ Kyoko thought and smiled – she finally had a chance to avenge her father's death.

Ren took out his black Makarov pistol and checked for it to be fully assembled and loaded. He put some spare magazines under the coat. It was his father's pistol – old, but reliable. They would be at the docks soon; he had to be ready to go head on as soon as they arrived.

"Is there any news from Yoshi?" He asked the driver. Yoshi was their spy, whom they integrated into Akatoki in order to find out through whom the group was distributing drugs. So far the information that Yoshi got them was immensely helpful. The whole plan was based on what he provided. Ren trusted only a few people. Yoshi was one of them.

"Yes, sir. He said that they are negotiating the terms of providing the drugs with the dealers right now." He paused and thought trying to remember if there was anything else worth mentioning. "He also said something about a girl, probably prostitute, although as far as I understood she is not involved in the whole thing. Probably, just ended up in the wrong place, at the wrong time." Ren thought about the new conditions they had on their hands _if we go in like was planned, she will probably end up injured or dead. Lory wouldn't like that._

"Tell the guys to avoid injuring her" That was really the best Ren could do for her at the moment. He couldn't fail the job for a prostitute, could he? _If she ends up hurt, I'll pay for the medical expenses and provide for a family while she can't work._ He figured, and then a more unpleasant outcome came to his mind _if she dies tonight I'll make sure to pay her all respects in her resting place._ Ren wasn't exactly satisfied with the latter thought. He wanted to avoid deaths of his own and innocent bystanders as much as he could. So far only 1 person died on his conscience. _Rick, what would you do? I failed you, what if I'm gonna fail her as well…_ He didn't have more time to think about it as the car stopped, and the driver opened the door. It was 2:30. _Perfect timing, as always._ Ren thought satisfied. He hasn't broken his perfect record of being on time.

"We are in position. I order the start of operation. Now!" They broke into the docks, not quite expecting to see what had awaited them there.

Kyoko unfolded a beautiful pair of handcrafted knives, when one of the gangsters turned to scream at her. "You bitch, hurry…" He was shocked when he saw her with a weapon ready to attack "What the hell?!" He tried to avoid her hit, but it was too late. The first blood of this night was spilled. She didn't kill him, but wounded the man enough for him to be out of work for at least a week. Kyoko was trained since the age of five. She knew where to hit, stab or shoot to kill, and where to aim to leave them alive, but useless for the time being. Other man turned at the noise and saw what has happened.

"Jack! You bloody bastard, you planned this all!" The supposed leader of the group yelled at the junkie across the room. He took out his pistol and aimed it at the man.

"I swear, it ain't my fault. Tis not my fault, don't kill me, it ain't me!" He pleaded for mercy, but to no avail. A loud bang sound stilled everyone in the room. Jack hit the floor, with blood gashing out of his head, eyes rolling backwards. He lay there. Dead.

"I didn't get to where I am by forgiving scum like you." The man said coldly and turned to face the girl to deal with her in a similar way. Kyoko stood there frozen. She wasn't afraid of blood or death, but she couldn't look at the dead bodies. Her memory would start picturing to vividly a similar scene of her dead father lying in his own blood on the floor. This man, he was a drug addict, he didn't have family, he has probably robbed and raped people before, he was not her father, but she still felt guilty. _He died because of me_. Her conscience whispered in the head. She tried to get a grip of herself. Not a good place to lose your cool _No he didn't. He was a criminal, a junkie, he wanted to rape me! It's not my fault that he was stupid enough to get involved with any of this shit._ The more reasonable part of her insisted.

She snapped out of her state, because of sudden tearing pain. A bullet has scratched her left arm. He was certainly aiming for the heart; she would have been dead by now, if he hasn't missed for whatever reason. The pain acted had a very sobering effect on her. She started moving; trying to avoid the aim of pistols she came closer to the group of men, bringing them on the ground, wounded and helpless.

Unfortunately she didn't see the shadow behind her back, until she fell to the ground, unable to breathe properly. Sudden rush of adrenalin hit her; everything seemed to be in slow motion, in a haze. She could hear people screaming, she saw them running and dropping dead. _What is happening?_ Then her body has convulsed from the sudden pain. Sound and vision becoming more clear for a second. She felt as if her back was on fire. Pain was unbearable. She screamed and trashed on the ground in the bloodbath. Until she could feel no more.

Sleepiness was overcoming Kyoko. She was tired. The girls wanted to close her eyes. _Yes, sleep is what I need. I will just close my eyes and get some rest._ Kyoko almost fall asleep, until a sudden pain radiated from her cheek. Someone slapped her across her face. Then she heard his voice.

"Open your eyes!" she obliged.

 **Sooo? How was it? Have you already guessed who Yoshi is from the original Skip Beat characters? If so review) did you like it? If not tell me why, I am still quite a new author, without a good experience, so I am open to any criticism. I will try to update soon. ;)**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hello! Who expected a new update so soon? I didn't! But it's here! Yay! So those of you who said that Yoshi is Yashiro were right. In this chapter Kuon is going to address him as Yashiro. The sudden name change will make sence in the next chapter. This chapter was quite hard to write and I am not quite sure what I want from the next one, so it might take some time for me to post a new update (but I will still try to do it before the end of august** **I hope you enjoy this chapter, and as always I am open to any of you criticism and I ache for more reviews, cause I just love them.**

 **WARNING: Death of a character. (should I move it to M?)**

Right before they barged into the room, Ren heard a sound of a shot coming from inside. He signaled other men to be on guard and to proceed carefully and quietly. He was the first to go in, and what he so shocked him. There was a body lying on the floor _probably one of the local druggies._ Then he saw her. She was just standing in the middle of the room, not noticing the pistol aimed at her chest. He had to think quickly. There was no way that Ren could run to push her out of the bullets way in time. So he shot at the man's arm, causing him to miss. He glanced back at the strange girl and was relieved that she snapped out of her trance. He was surprised when she ran to attack other men.

There was no point in just standing now, so he and his guys proceeded to complete their plan. In the midst of a fight, gunshots and blood, he saw her again, attacking a bold gangster. Then he went back to pay attention to what was going on around him. A few minutes later a horrible cry sounded through the room. Almost everyone from Akatoki was now lying either dead or unconscious. Ren searched for the girl, and then he saw her. Lying in the puddle of blood, shaking, crying from the pain. The vision all too similar to what he has witnessed years ago. _I cannot fail her, like I failed Rick._ It was the only thought on his mind right now. The others will deal with the remaining Akatoki and their dealers. He had to save her. Nothing else mattered at the moment.

When He came to her, she wasn't moving anymore. She was hardly breathing and her eyes were slowly closing. _No, no, no! Don't close them! You can't die on me!_

"Open your eyes!" He shouted at her angrily, slapping her face, trying to wake her. Ren was relieved to see the amber eyes staring at him, but he knew she needed medical treatment as soon as possible, or else she wasn't going to make it.

"Stay awake! Talk to me!" He ordered the girl and tried to gently examine her wound. _She was shot in the back, the only thing I can do now is try to stop the bleeding._ He ripped a piece of his expensive shirt and put it to her wound. Then he took out his belt and slipped it under her to secure the piece of cloth. _She needs a doctor; this is not going to help a lot._ The quickest way to get her to the hospital was for him to drive her. Could he leave his men here alone? _They are professionals, not babies!_ He made up his mind. Ren gently put his hand under her to pick Kyoko up. She hissed from the pain. He ignored it.

"Yashiro" He shouted searching for the man. When his eyes found the person in question he ordered. "Look after the men, report to me when you finish the operation!" Yashiro nodded and Ren started running to his car.

The streets were almost empty, so the drive to the hospital was short. He ran in and requested the best available doctors to tend to the dying girl in his arms and in a matter seconds nurses took her body from him and started wheeling her off into the hospital corridors, probably to the operating room. Ren followed them, and was stopped by one of the nurses at the registry office.

"Sir, can you please fill in the details of the patient?" Ren was furious _she is asking me to fill some administrator shit, while the girl is on the verge of dying!_ He glared at the poor nurse and pushed through to go after the disappearing cart.

"Later"

Terrified nurse neither argued nor tried to stop him. He quickly found the operating room and sat on the uncomfortable plastic chairs opposite the doors. For the next few hours all he did was staring at the damned door. In his mind however, the fragile balance that was slowly gained over the last few years was now crashing. The resurfaced memories now seemed to be even more vivid for the man.

 **6 years ago**

Kuon was standing over a defeated man. His knuckles were scraped by constant fighting, fresh blood sipping through the scratched skin. _Two other bastards got away. Damn._ Now he'll have to run after them. Someone tapped his shoulder from behind. Only a madman would have done that or Rick. He turned his head and was not surprised to see his bodyguard and the best friend. Rick Morgan. If there was someone in this world, whom Kuon would listen to other than his dad, it would be Rick. Over the years their professional relationships have developed into friendship, he saw Rick as his own brother.

"Hey, nice piece of work here. Looks like the student surpassed the teacher, neh?" The bodyguard smiled at Kuon, approving of what he saw in this dimly lit street.

"I surpassed you long ago, you old man!" Kuon teased his friend. Rick was 5 years older and still young at his 20. Damn he wasn't even legal age in states! Nevertheless the idiot was always complaining that he was turning into graybeard and slowly balding. He didn't even have a fucking beard, and his hair was all in place, but it has become a joke between the two.

"Oh, shut up! You wouldn't understand the struggles of old people. Your youth is a treasure that will pass quickly, oh boy!" Rick was getting all super dramatic and Kuon laughed at his antics. "You know, man, you should have been an actor." Rick stopped his passionate "youth speech" and looked mischievously at Kuon.

"Nah, The drama Queen, or rather Prince Title belongs solemnly to you…" He knew Kuon would get this, and then will get annoyed "Your highness Elf prince». The facial expression that the young teen had was hilarious. His cheeks turned red and mouth was open, but no sound came out. It took him at least a minute to compose himself.

"That's a low blow!" He accused Rick

"No it's not"

"Yes, it is!"

"It would be, if I told your father about this"

"You wouldn't dare!"

"Hmm" He smiled smugly "I wouldn't be so sure if I were you, after all old people just love sharing youngster's embarrassing stories." He winked at Kuon

"Well, you are not an old man." He huffed

"Just a minute ago you said I was one"

"You said it yourself"

"Ah, I feel like I suddenly need to make a phone call to your fath…" he was interrupted by Kuon."

"OK! I get it, oh the youngest of the youngest!" Kuon said sarcastically.

"Doesn't sound too sincere" Rick continued teasing the younger boy. Kuon just glared at him, as if asking - _Really?_

"Ok, young man, let's go get you home. We are done for the night" the bodyguard turned to leave the almost empty street. Kuon followed.

They have almost reached his house, when Rick has suddenly pushed Kuon down to the ground, covering the young boy with his body. The second later a bullet whistled through the air where just few moment before Kuon stood. His eyes widened at the sudden realization. _Someone is trying to kill me. But how would they know where that I would be here._ He was slowly processing the situation, when it hit him _they followed us from the downtown!_ He then remembered that two of the men run away. How could he have forgotten about them? The teen tried to move to stand up and find the nearest cover, but his bodyguard wasn't moving out of his way.

"Rick, move!" He demanded, but all he got was a painful hiss, when he tried to move again. Kuon didn't understand. _What's wrong?_ He then glanced at the cold asphalt, only to see it covered in blood that was slowly spilling from under him. _What the fuck? I don't feel any wounds on me._ He realized it then _Rick!_

"Rick, answer me! Damn it! Answer!" He shouted from in the man's ear. When no answer followed, he carefully moved Rick on the ground. He quickly examined the front, but found nothing. _He covered me; he was shot in the back._ Kuon tried to roll his best friend sideways in attempt of trying to locate the wound and stop the bleeding, when a hand stopped him, Rick's hand.

"Kuon, don't. It's too late" His voice was throaty and he could hardly speak. It was painful just looking at Rick; he couldn't imagine what his best and only friend felt like, what horrible pain he was suffering from. He couldn't let him die

"Rick, you need help, now. I am going call ambulance, just hold on!" He tried to reassure himself that there was a solution and that his friend was going to be all right again.

"No, Kuon, listen, grow up to be a good man, and don't forget what I taught you, you will be a leader once in the future." His eyes felt heavy, Rick knew he was dying, he was ready. When you are a bodyguard of a criminal group heir, dying is an unofficial part of your job description. He smiled at the thought. _Poor boy._ Kuon was strong and fast learning, but he was still a child, even at fifteen years old. _He will grow up and become a good man._ These were one of his last thoughts before his eyes closed. He heard Kuon's voice through the blackness that was slowly wrapping around him.

"Open your eyes Rick! You can't die! He cried, tears spilling from his eyes, covered in blood, he was mourning over a soon to be lost brined.

"Old men need lots of sleep Kuon; I am just going to sleep for a long time now." He joked even at his deathbed. "Goodbye, elf prince Kuon" Rick tried to chuckle but it sounded more like rattle. Then his last breath left his body and the spark of life left his eyes. He died on Kuon's hands, because of Kuon. _It is my fault. If only I didn't let them get away._

He snapped out of his painful memories, when he felt somebody shaking his shoulder. Ren looked up. It was a doctor, probably one of those who were operating Kyoko. He stared at him waiting for a verdict, too exhausted to ask.

"She sustained a heavy blood loss, but luckily the bullet didn't tear any of the major arteries. We did a blood transfusion and removed the bullet from her body. She is now in the intensive care unit. If she makes it tonight than her chances of surviving will increase significantly" The doctor explained.

"What are the chances now?"

"Unfortunately not very high" The doctor sighed, knowing that the man sitting in front of him wanted exact numbers "30/70" Ren thought about it for a few seconds. The doctor was waiting patiently for the man to come back to senses.

"Do you want to see her?" He offered. It was against the hospital rule, but he felt that it was what the men needed right now.

"Yes" finally moved from the chair, his muscles aching from the hours spent in an uncomfortable position. He followed the room. He slowly came in, unsure of whether he should be here or not. He didn't even know who she was after all! _It doesn't matter now. I need to know that she is alive, that I didn't fail her, like I failed Rick._ He slowly lowered onto the chair next to her bad and took her hand in his. It was warm. She was alive. He felt relieved. It felt like hours, before the doctor's voice sounded through the dark room.

"I'm afraid it's all time I can give you. Could we please go now" He knew that Doctor had to follow the rules, so Ren stood up, not wanting to release the small, warm hand. He glanced at her one more time, squeezed her hand to remember the warm feeling, then released her and left.

"Give her all the best treatment and accommodation. I will pay." He instructed the doctor and turned to go to the hospital's exit.

"Sure, Sir"

The cold night air hit him, as soon as Ren was outside. After hours spent in the hospital it was nice to breathe in fresh air, not tainted by the smell of medicines. He took out a cigarrete and lit it quickly. Standing there, smoking has finally calmed him. She was alive. He didn't fail her.

It felt good.


	4. Chapter 4

**Hello everyone! I know I said that I wasn't going to post anything soon, but I kinda wrote the whole new chapter, so might as well post it now. I hope I can get more reviews with your opinions, because they inspire and guide me in my writing, so I will be waiting for them** **And of course any criticism is welcomed! I hope you enjoy this chapter!**

Kyoko woke up in a white room that was brightly lit with the sun. The constant beeping was starting to get annoying. She tried to move, but her body was to sore for that and she groaned. She didn't know how she got here or where the "her" actually was. How much time has passed since I lost conscience? She looked around and found a red button, which she assume would call in nurse or a doctor, so she stretched her arm, which was attached to the ridiculous number of wires and tubes and pressed the mutton as hard as she could. It beeped, and few seconds later two nurses burst through the door. She looked at them shocked at the sudden fast appearance.

"I am sorry, I guess it was emergency button, I am alright," She said with a raspy voice. Nurses calmed down a bit and smiled at her.

"Don't worry patient-sama, we are happy to help you" They replied politely "Since you have just awaken we will call the doctor to do a check up on you, would you like anything else?"

"Oh please, just Kyoko "She was quite embarrassed by such a polite attitude of the nurses, who were obviously older than her and by far more respectable in Kyoko's eyes. "Could I please have some water, my throat feels quite dry" The nurses nodded and one of them went away to call the doctor, while the other filled the glass with water and helped Kyoko to sit up, to drink it.

"Don't hurry Kyoko-san, try to relax, in your condition it is very important to not overexert yourself." The older woman said kindly. Then it actually hit Kyoko. What is my condition, how did I get here, what happened? She has finished sipping the water, ready to voice this question, when the doctor came through the door. He was a man in his forties with greying hair and hard posture, he was not smiling at all, but Kyoko felt that he was actually a kind person The doctors have to be kind and compassionate don't they? He slowly proceeded into the room and asked the nurse to leave; she kissed him on the check and went out of the door.

"Ah, sorry for this little display of affection, it is my wife" The doctor explain, slightly embarrassed. Kyoko was right; although he looked gruesome his personality was different.

"Don't worry eh..." She paused not knowing how to address him

"Darumaya-san" came a fill in reply from the man.

"Don't worry Darumaya-san, it is nice to have a person who loves you so much, and your wife was very kind to me." She smiled at him.

"I am glad" He smiled back at her. "So now I'll have to ask you a few questions and then we will proceed to check your wound and they decide what we are going to do, alright?"

"Sounds nice."

"So, first of all, what is your name?" He prepared a pan and a hospital form to fill in.

"Mogami Kyoko" he started writing then.

"Age?"

"17"

"How can we contact your family?"

"Uhm, you can't" She said hesitantly "I don't have one" She felt embarrassed by the fact and didn't want the doctor to ask any further questions related to this theme, but she knew that he will.

"Ok, orphanage then or a guardian?" Darumaya asked just as a formality. He understood everything from the look on her face. She didn't have anyone to look after her. He wasn't surprised, considering who brought her here and what he'd seen during operation.

"You were brought in yesterday by a man, who is known as Tsuruga Ren, he is a part of one of the criminal groups as far as I know. Also during yesterday's operation I saw some tattoos on your back. I didn't report this to the police, and I am not planning on doing so, but are you involved in any way with them?" He felt pity for her, alone in such a harsh world at such a young tender age. Tsuruga Ren was infamous in Tokyo; no one dared to go against him. He never left any evidence and could never be caught, so when the same Tsuruga Ren came yesterday into his hospital with the girl on his arms it was a shock. Darumaya never knew that ruthless criminal – as police portrayed Ren, would be a young man. Moreover a young man who would care about anything other than himself and money.

"You could say so." She replied quietly. _There is no point in hiding it from Darumaya-san._ "I don't know who Tsuruga Ren is, but I was raised in the family that was a part of a criminal group, that's why you cannot contact them, I ran away." She just hoped that as soon as she was healed, they would let her leave, without trying to enrol her in the system. The orphanage was not a place for her. Normal kids could never understand the ones involved with mafia. When she was still back at Kyoto, everyone in school constantly gave her a cold shoulder. Nobody dared to directly kick her out, because that meant challenging Fuwa group, but she could always feel the glares at her back and the unspoken curses.

"Ok, I see." He didn't really know what to do. _How do you deal with a runaway minor from a Yakuza family? Why wasn't that in my university study books!?_ He sighed. He knew he shouldn't be so trusting with a member of yakuza, even if it was an ex-member of yakuza, but he couldn't do otherwise. That girl needed help and support. A family, not an orphanage. So he decided to offer her that help

"If you need a place to stay, after you are released I can help you," He suggested, trying not to sound like a pervert. He had a few ideas of where she could stay, and where he could monitor her life. _That's sounds quite perverted._

"You are not going to report me?" she asked unbelieving.

"No, orphanage is good for those who lost their families, but not suitable for everyone" The man tried to reassure the young girl in front of him. "My dad lives in Tokyo. He runs a small home restaurant with my mom, they are looking for some stuff to hire, you know, I could recommend you. You can even stay at my old room in there; it's been empty for years now." He offered, hoping that she'll agree.

"I can't impose on your family like this." She was too polite to accept this, and she didn't want to put innocent people in danger if somebody came looking for her, after all she wasn't just a seventeen year old girl, she was involved with one of the strongest yakuza group. She couldn't risk it.

"Just think about it" He finished writing and stood up "I guess I'll take my leave now, if you need anything Mogami-san, please don't hesitate to call nurses, I need to schedule your check up with a few other specialists, so I will send someone to notify you about them. Have a good rest." He waved goodbye and left.

Kyoko just lay down and stared at the ceiling. _What am I going to do now? No home, no education, no work. Darumaya-san's offer is the best thing that could have happened, but what if Fuwa or even worse Akatoki will be searching for me. I am a runaway that got involved in a pretty messed up situation, where can I be safe._ She tried to remember what happened yesterday, before she passed out, the only thing she could recall was a masculine voice that ordered her to open her eyes _that must have been The Tsuruga Ren, whoever he is. What if his group would want me to pay back the medical expenses! I don't have anything._ Having thought that, she remembered that her things were not here when she looked around the room. That meant that she really had nothing, even corn and last fathers gift were lost. She couldn't bare it, because now she didn't even have memories of the most important people. Now she was truly alone in this harsh world. She cried herself into sleep, which was better than staying awake in the painful reality.

After he left the hospital Ren drove to his apartments. He couldn't wait to get home and get into the hot shower, to wash away the dry blood from himself. He was exhausted, but knew that soon, Lory will send somebody to fetch him for another meeting. _I'll have to explain why I left my man there. He wouldn't be very happy._ With those thoughts Ren entered his apartments and went straight to shower, stripping off the bloodied torn clothes. After that he went to sleep. This night has exhausted him, sleep came fast over him.

Few hours later the buzzing phone has woken the man up. He was still not fully rested, but felt much better than before. He looked at the touchscreen. The call was from Yashiro, so he answered it.

"Yes?"

"Good morning, Ren!" Then Yashiro went on explaining what has happened yesterday and that in the end the operation was successful with no losses from their side. Ren knew he could rely on his lieutenant. _Has Takarada been informed already?_ He wondered. The person on the other side of a phone line soon answered this

"Takarada wants to see you later today; I have sent him the report about yesterday night." Then he paused and continued, "There were no losses on our side, but I didn't find the girl's body, so I can't be sure about what happened to her." Ren couldn't decide if that was good or bad. _Should I report her, or should I just pay her medical expenses and let her go?_ He knew that Lory wouldn't do anything to the girl, but was damn sure that if the boss heard about him caring about any girl, even in such a twisted way… Let's just say Ren wasn't ready to sit through the Lory's Love Lectures Course in the nearest future. _What do I do?_ Takarada was his boss and had the right to know full account; the history proved that even small details could be vital turning points sometimes, so he decided to just bare the eccentricity of his godfather and report the full account.

"She is in the hospital now, I took her there yesterday" He told Yashiro, Ren knew that man would pass this information to Takarada.

"Ok then, I will see you at Takarada's" with that said they disconnected. Ren groaned mentally. _Why do I have the love obsessed yakuza boss as a godfather?_ He then climbed out of bed and went on getting ready for the day. He'd go see Takarada, but first Ren decided to stop by at the hospital and check on the mysterious girl. _She should have woken up by now I hope._ The odds were not very hopeful 30/70, but Ren didn't want to think about the negative outcome.

Kyoko was a light sleeper. She was trained to always be on guard, old habits died hard, so when she felt something moving her hand her peaceful sleep was terminated. She opened her eyes and was surprised to see the unfamiliar man sitting next to her bad, holding her hand.

"Who are you?" She demanded cautiously, trying to withdraw her hand from his grip.

"I would like to ask you the same question, young lady." Ren smirked. There was nothing bad in teasing her a little bit. He didn't expect her to wake up so easily, but was happy that she seemed to be relatively healthy. _She still looks weak, but her skin is not so pale now, and her voice is quite strong._ That was a huge relief to him.

"I asked first!" _What a childish reaction_. He smirked at her.

"Is that your best point? Ren inquired, raising his brow.

"Do you have a better one?" She counter-attacked him

"Yes I do"

"As soon as you are ready, jerk" She huffed and stared intensely in his eyes, as if challenging Ren.

"Not a very nice way to speak to a man who saved your life"

"You are Tsuruga Ren!? She was shocked. Darumaya-san has described him as a criminal, part of yakuza group; she didn't expect him to look so normal and law-abiding. He was also very young and handsome, hot even, as much as she didn't want to, she had to admit it. Ren was shocked at first.

"How did you know?"

"I was told that you brought me here by the doctor" that was plausible.

"You still haven't told me your name"

"Mogami Kyoko"

"Why were you there last night?" That was an important question that could determine what would happen to her. Kyoko realized this quite well. She knew the yakuza world in and out, if this man knew she was involved with the other group that could go very wrong for her, especially considering that she didn't know which group he belonged to. So Kyoko decided to withhold this information.

"Long story" She mentally punched herself _It is the lamest excuse ever, Kyoko, you stupid girl._

"I have time"

"I don't think so" If you start something, you finish it, so she decided to try and avoid him once more. Although to be fair that one sounded quite rude and aggressive, not the best word choice.

"I didn't ask what you think," he growled losing his patience. There was a warning in his voice that Kyoko could recognize. He would get information one way or another, so there was no point in being stubborn. _I can just tell him some bits and pieces, hopefully that would satisfy him._

"The local junkies caught me on one of the streets that night, couldn't run away from them, because of the bags, so I followed them to the docks and planned to run from there"

"That wasn't too long" He remarked, seemingly calm, but Kyoko could feel the unasked question – _Why you didn't want to tell, if it's just that?_ So she decided to justify her previous reluctance.

"I didn't want to remember that, not the best day of my life" that satisfied him. Ren could understand that, there were still some questions that he wanted answers to, but they could wait.

"Are you from Akatoki?" she suddenly asked

"How do you know about them?"

"You answer first" This time she looked quite serious, so he answered her.

"No, I am not, your turn".

"The guys in the docks said they were from Akatoki, they wanted to take me with them to force into prostitution." Now that was a very good excuse to cover her real history with Akatoki. No one could question that alibi and that would automatically put her under the innocent type.

"And you were not one before?" She was outraged that he even dares to suggest such a thing about her.

"How could you think so? Of course not!" She shouted angrily at him. Ren smiled, it was his chance to get the real full story from her. Like hell would he believe that she was a simple, normal high-school girl, especially after he saw her in action yesterday. There was some serious training done in past. _Just what are you hiding?_

"I am sorry, but that is a logical assumption." He said calmly "What would a girl of your age do in that part of city? At night. Alone." He emphasized her conditions.

"I used to live there"

"Even if it's true, it doesn't explain why you were out so late, what were your parents thinking, when they let you out"

"I don't have parents"

"I'm sorry" He really was, loosing dear people was hard, he knew it from personal experience.

"What do you mean you _used_ to live there?" She swore in her mind. How could she let that detail slip? How was she going to explain that, was beyond her understanding.

"That I don't live there anymore"

"Since when? Yesterday?" He asked sarcastically.

"Yes, so what?"

"What are you hiding?" He was tired of playing her games, thus went for a head on attack.

"Nothing" _nothing my ass._ He thought

She turned away from him. The movement of her neck caused the hospital robe to slide down a little, revealing the colorful pattern on her back, close to her neck. _These are yakuza tattoos._ He took the edge of her robe and pulled it, to reveal more of her skin.

"What the hell do you think you are doing?!" She moved away from him and screamed, "That is called sexual harassment!" She was red as tomato from both anger and embarrassment.

"What group are you from?" his voice was cold and dead serious. That explained her graceful and skilled moves in yesterdays fight. He knew for sure that she wasn't a prostitute, because her training suggested quite a high position. _Maybe an heiress of one of the clans or branches of the clan. What is she doing here?_

"I have no idea what are you talking about!"

"Oh, really?" He said with a sweet fake voice drained in sarcasm. His smile was bright, but she could feel the frightening anger behind it.

"Listen, and listen well girl" He looked her right in the eyes. "I can do whatever the fuck I want with you now. I can kill you, or sell you to a brothel or may be just enjoy your young body myself and then throw you out in the cold streets. Do not mess with me, just answer the question, and then we will see what should happen to you." His low voice send shivers down her spine, his glare was frightening, Kyoko could feel his oppressing power. It was horrifying. She realized why he was one of the worst criminals in Tokyo. She told him.

"I am from Mogami branch of Fuwa family, but I ran away a year ago." She mumbled quietly, not daring to speak loud. In this situation she could do nothing. She was helpless.

"Mogami from Fuwa group" he said aloud trying to remember where he heard this names and what he knew about the groups. _I'll have to dig out some more info about this. Anyway she is a runaway, so that shouldn't be too much trouble, but I need to know the cause to judge on the matter._

He seemed to be deep in his thoughts, so Kyoko used this as a chance to move further away from him. He was like a demon Lord just a few seconds ago, that wasn't something she wanted to see again. Ever. He then snapped out of his thoughts and started talking again.

"Why?" This was said in a sifter tone, but he still looked quite gruesome. She didn't want to test her luck and told him everything. About Akatoki, about Sho, about his drug business. She wasn't his bodyguard, he betrayed her in the worst possible way, and so she wouldn't lie to help him.

 **So how was it? I know that the darumaya's couple names are not darumaya, but since I didn't know them I just put them in this story as Darumayas. And the nurse and the doctor aren't actually the Darumaya couple, they are like son and daughter in law, so don't get confused. Hope you liked it. R &R**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hi, everyone! Yeah, I know it's been a very, very, very prolonged silence; my bad** **But I do have a valid reason – the nightmare of every person in the school – application process/UCAS. So I hope you can forgive me. Anyway I have finally written a new chapter, which is smaller than previous ones, but for a reason – it is kind of the end of the first arc in this fanfic and I just couldn't write the development in this chapter, BUT the next one is coming soon, and I am actually giving myself a deadline – The next chapter will be out by the 13** **th** **of December! I hope you enjoy this chapter – there is not much action, but, hopefully it is still interesting) Read and Review)**

He contemplated what to do next. After hearing Kyoko's story he didn't think she'd be much of a threat to the LME, if at all. Of course he had checked her background, and overall she seemed to be rather harmless. _A runaway yakuza girl, even if they search for her, it's unlikely that we are going to be dragged into it._ Ren concluded for himself. It has already been 6 days since he threatened the girl into confession of who she really was. Takarada wasn't very interested in her, except for maybe using her as a means of teasing Ren about his non-existent love life, but as the Boss knew about Tsuruga's 'circumstances' he didn't question why his godson had rushed the unknown girl into the hospital.

Ren hasn't visited the girl since their first and hopefully last encounter, not that he needed to anyway. Of course he was concerned for her well being or to put it more precisely – her not dying, and asked for the daily reports from doctor Darumaya, on her progress, but it had to do more with his psychological trauma, rather than him being actually interested in the girl herself. He has already decided to pay for all the medical expenses and erase her from his life after it. The hospital would notify the man when the patient would be discharged and that would be the end of any connection between them.

She has been stuck in the hospital bed for the 6 long days; the only one who came to visit her was Darumaya-san. Every time the doctor came, he tried to coax her into coming to live with his parents, and the more she thought about it, more she liked the idea. It seemed that whomever Tsuruga Ren worked for wasn't interested in her. She got her bag delivered to the hospital the next day after the men left. She was ecstatic to find Corn's stone and father's gift in there safe. When Kyoko finally got over her excitement, she noticed an envelope that was placed by the nurse on the nightstand. Inside was a very official letter from her scary saviour.

 _Mogami-san,_

 _This letter has been sent to notify you, that the medical expenses have been fully paid for you. I believe that it is in our common interest for you not to mention any of the events to the third parties. You are free to go, after the hospital staff discharges you._

 _Tsuruga Ren._

She was relieved to know that. Knowing that she would have no further connection with the unknown yakuza group was a relief, Fuwa group wouldn't be looking for her in Tokyo and she will make sure that Sho wouldn't be able to recognize her. It was a perfect chance. _I can now, come to live with the Darumaya-san's parents, without putting them in danger!_ It looked like her life was finally changing for the best. After all of the suffering and troubles Kyoko has gone through, she finally had a chance to become a normal girl, like she always dreamed. There would be no obligations, no criminal dealings; no one would judge her, because of her family. She was finally going to be free.

3 weeks later, Kyoko was finally getting dressed in the mufti clothes, instead of a hospital robe. Darumaya couple has visited her, not long after she finally accepted their son's offer. Kyoko has instantly found common interests with Taicho, who although seemed to be a very brutal man, actually was a very kind father figure. They shared common passion for cooking and Kyoko couldn't wait to finally get her hands on the kitchen utensils. The other area, which made them closer, was their beliefs. Kyoko, being raised in an old yakuza family had very traditional views, which certainly made the old restaurant owner very satisfied and gave some hope that the new generation wasn't completely doomed. He offered the girl to work with him in a restaurant, assisting his wife in client service and him in the kitchen.

The relationships with Darumaya-san's mother didn't start as smoothly, as with his father. At first Kyoko was not sure how to communicate with Taicho's wife. In her life she had very little, almost no contact with average women. All the females who surrounded her on a daily basis were either prostitutes or heiresses, and the girls at school would always be to jealous of her having relationships with Sho and his family or to scared by the same situation to ever talk to her, without any dire need. She never knew that women could be so gentle and innocent, she never had anyone to share her personal problems with openly - she never felt motherly love before. That created the awkwardness between the elder woman and a young girl, but nevertheless Okami-san treated the unfortunate teen as her own daughter and both of them slowly but surely worked on improving and exploring their relationship. When Kyoko was leaving the hospital all of them felt they were close enough to live together. There would be difficulties and misunderstanding, but they would surpass them. Taicho and Okami were the first real family Kyoko had in years, since her father died.

Darumaya-san pulled by the old traditional house that was a family restaurant. It looked nothing like the Fuwa residence. The walls were a little shabby; there were no lush gardens or grand gates. It was an average house, well kept, but affected by time. For Kyoko it held no difference. It was her new home, with people who cared about her, she would have been happy living under the bridge, as long as she is not alone.

Ren stood outside with a lit cigarrete. Acrid smoke filled his lungs, scratching his throat, yet numbing his pain. He hated smoking. It was useless. But it brought the needed relief to his mixed-up life. _Would it be different if Rick didn't die that night?_ It was the question Kuon kept asking himself, ever since the fatal moment, but the answer was always the same. _No._ Was the answer he always came up with in the end. He was born to be free of laws that society upheld, but imprisoned by his own upbringing, family and social conditioning. It was a vicious circle with no escape route, except death. It was both salvation and the downfall for people like him. Sometimes the death seemed to be a really appealing option, he had nothing tying him to this world, he didn't have anything to live for.

His phone rang in the pocket, taking Ren's thoughts away from the grim subject. It was a call from the hospital. _Hopefully it is good news_. He didn't need any more pain in his life at the moment. Letting the smoke out of his lungs, He brought the cell up to his head and pressed the answer button.

"Tsuruga Ren?" he recognized the doctors voice.

"Yes"

"It is Dr. Darumaya from the hospital. Mogami Kyoko is discharged from hospital. As she is a minor, and considering her situation." He emphasized to let Ren know, what exactly he was talking about. "I have offered her to live with my parents, and she has agreed. I believe it is the best way to deal with her underage status."

Ren was pleased with doctor's decision. Darumaya-san was clearly a clever man. Notifying the authorities would only make girl's life worse, and could possibly endanger the Takarada group, if the events of the fatefull night got out.

"Thank you, I believe it was a right decision. Goodbye" He disconnected, not caring to listen the doctor's answer.

The image of a girl came to his mind. It was hard to forget the feeling of her fragile body and warm, oozing blood on his hands. The coppery smell and bright red stains of her blood on his clothes brought morbid memories and fear back. Whether Ren wanted or not, his sanity was dependent on the survival of this girl. He couldn't get her out of his mind, after she was taken from his arms. Then, when her condition has stabilized, Ren finally felt relieved, he felt happy. He had something to live for that night; he lived to ensure that she survived. This little, naïve, troubled girl made him want to live to see her survive, to know that he wasn't guilty, to redeem himself in some way. When he met her in person she was childish, arrogant and even tried to go against him. It was fresh, but annoying and very different from his normal life. After studying her profile, he almost felt bad for her. The story was just to similar to his own, born into yakuza life, but unlike him had the guts to run away and go for what she saw as her dream and then crushed by the betrayal of that scumbag – Fuwa Sho. This guy was going to become his main source of headache, as if the Akatoki group wasn't troublesome enough before he joined in on the drug dealing business with them. _I am thinking way too much about her. She just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, just some random girl. She is healthy and safe now, she is not my responsibility and her life is not my concern._ He brought the cigarrete back to his mouth, fogging the restless thoughts and bringing him back to the normal numbness. He exhaled, threw the stump on the ground, stepped on it and walked to the car that was waiting for him.

 **So, how was it? Good, Bad, Terrible, Beyond saving? I hope at the very least it is readable-tell me what you think… And wait for the new chapter, which is coming soon!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Okay, so that was not updated by 13** **th** **December… What can I say – I am really sorry. I have written a first part of this chapter in the beginning of December, but then I realised that I did not like what I previously planned and I did not know what to write. It took me an awful lot of time to finally come up with the idea and to think it through, so I hope you will like it** **J** **I have also decided to make both Kyoko and Ren slightly different in terms of their characters. Firstly Kyoko in this story will be more mature in her behaviour than Kyoko in original manga/anime, I felt that it would me more suiting for such story. Also Ren will be slightly more "Kuon-ish" more relaxed and more daring than in manga – He is a part of Yakuza after all))**

 **Also a big thank you to everyone who continued to review, up until now, it has motivated me to finally finish this chapter and post it!**

Her life in Darumaya was everything that she could ever dream of, the only drawback was that she couldn't enrol herself into a high school or any other educational courses for that matter. She simply didn't have enough time and money. Of course the elderly couple has offered her to pay for this expenses, but Kyoko felt too indebted to them already and didn't want to burden the Taicho and Okami-san any further. So she worked as a part-time waitress; part-time cook, helping to run the home restaurant.

Kyoko knew that there was a possibility that certain people would search for her, and that she needed to change her image, to which Shotauro and the Fuwa group were used, if she wanted to keep low and escape their attention. That is why she was now standing at the checkpoint of one of the finest hairdressers of the Tokyo. Her long hair were cropped and styled to lie just above her shoulders and the traditional black was now burning fiery orange. She looked nothing like the Kyoko Mogami from the Fuwa group. It was a start of the new period in her life, she felt truly changed and renewed.

"Even the simple haircut and the change of the hair color can significantly change your appearance". The lady attendant commented, while counting the total for the services. "You cannot even begin to imagine how much, you look wonderful with your new style!"

"Thank you, that is true, I hope my life can change now as well" Kyoko kept up with the small talk

"I'm sure it will, many people feel like a haircut can help them to start anew" she has finally finished adding up the prices and raised her head to face Kyoko "That would be 24,000 yen, please"

Kyoko took out her wallet from the bag and looked for the right amount, finding only 30,000 "Here it is" she laid them on the desk, "Your change will be…" The cashier didn't have a chance to finish as Kyoko interrupted her "Just keep the change" she smiled "You have really helped me today, thank you!" she smiled again and walked out of the hairdresser happy and cheerful, ready to take the world on.

At the same time Tsuruga was sitting in yet another meeting. He was in charge of planning another operation, which would strengthen their positions in Tokyo. It was a risky one, but since Akatoki group has tried to breach their territory, now they had to show who was the real ruler of the city. If they didn't, the smaller groups could see it as an opportunity to shift the balance of powers and destabilize the group. That was not what he needed, especially now.

The operation "Ringdoh" was his main concern. A host who was supposed to act as his mistress for the operation was diagnosed to be HIV positive and had to retire, once Takarada heard of it. That put Ren in a difficult situation. He did not know, who else had enough experience to act alongside him. _Now I have to find someone with decent acting skills and enough knowledge of the inside of this business._ He then remembered specific skills Ruriko has showed him personally a few months ago, when he came to one of LME host clubs to relieve some stress after a busy day. _Yes she definitely was very, very skillful._ Ren thought darkly. But then realized that he will now have to make yet another trip to a hospital. He knew that the chances of him getting HIV were low. He was always very careful about using protection, ever since the first and hopefully last time he got STD. _Yes, getting chlamydia from a hooker, when I was 17 have taught me a good lesson._ He cringed remembering the unpleasant and certainly embarrassing experience from his past. _At least I'm not a stupid, irresponsible hormonal teenager anymore._ With that thought he called clinic to arrange an appointment.

Kyoko knew that despite her new image and new life, there was still a chance that somebody could find her. That is why she needed to know the situation in Tokyo. That is why she was now coming out of the clinic with the medical certificate that stated she was healthy and had no STD's. The best way to gather information about yakuza was to get it directly from them and the best place to do so was in a host club. Apparently the LoveMe club was one of the places where most of the influential criminals gathered. It was a respectable establishment in the heart of Tokyo, safely hidden from police and by-passers, they also offered quite a good pay and it was not a brothel, at least not unless you were willing to sell yourself in that way. As there were many important people, the boss – Lory Takarada have requested a confirmation from doctor that person was "clean" from anyone, who wanted to get a job at this place. What Kyoko did not know was the fact that Tsuruga Ren has just got his negative HIV results from the same clinic and was just coming out as well.

Ren was relieved to know that he was still as healthy as ever and decided that it was about time to go and celebrate the good news and possibly find a substitute for Ruriko's place on "Ringdoh". He was going to his car when fiery red hair caught his gaze. They belonged to a petite woman, who was standing in front of clinic, intensely staring at her phone and mumbling something about "stupid address". _She looks familiar, even though I'm sure I have never been acquainted with anyone with such hair color._ He dismissed the thought and went back to opening his car and soon drove away from the place.

After a lot of struggle, trying to figure out how to get to the address that the LoveMe manager gave her, she finally arrived at the place. It was in a basement of one of the skyscrapers. Once Kyoko passed a heavy door and got down the stairs she heard upbeat music, and felt sweet, fruity, languid smell of hookah that filled the place. Men were sitting in secluded booths and on the luxurious sofas, chatting to women, dressed in provocative but stylish dresses. Some of them were sitting with men; others were waitressing or just walking around looking for a prey. She would have felt very out of place, if she hasn't seen it all inside out before, in her days with Fuwa group. She went straight to the staff door and found a man who looked like the manager of the place.

"Are you Sawara Takenori?" she asked the men

He turned to her and replied, "Yes, indeed, I am" he politely smiled at the girl, trying to remember her name "And you must be Mogami…"

"Mogami Kyoko, sir" she quickly replied "It is nice to meet you" she bowed and continued speaking "I have collected the certificate from doctor and would like to start working as soon as possible, please."

He smiled at the new worker and proceeded to explain everything related to her job. Sawara has also showed Kyoko around and introduced her to a few experienced workers, who would help her with settling in. He then provided her with a dress for today and left Kyoko alone to change.

Once she got dressed, Kyoko looked at herself in the mirror. _Well it is not that revealing, I guess I can work in it just fine._ She was about to go out into the lounge, when the door opened and a beautiful raven-haired lady came in.

"Are you going to go out there looking like that?" She demanded harshly, without even introducing herself

"Yes? What is the problem with that?" Kyoko asked shocked

"You are the problem! Your hair is not properly styled! Have you even brushed it? And the make up, oh my God, you don't even have any make up on! Are you that stupid?!" Strange woman continued her rant, really scaring Kyoko, she was way to passionate about this argument. "Let me fix it!" She demanded from Kyoko and the next thing she new – she was seated down on a chair in front of the mirror and this woman was brushing her hair and then applying make up on her face. Kyoko was to shock to resist and just sat their blank-faced. "I am Kotonami Kanae by the way, you must be knew though, I haven't seen you here before?"

"Yes, I am, my name is Kyoko, today is my first day" she relaxed a little bit, realizing that her new acquaintance had good intentions. "Guess I could use some of your help" she chuckled and received a "shh" from Kotonami

"Don't move, I am trying to apply some mascara" she then continued chatting "Well we are all here sisters in despair, but don't expect me to be your best friend or something, in this business everyone can trust only themselves, we are all rivals here! I'm helping you now, only because it would be bad for the host club, if you went out there looking like that!" she explained to Kyoko, as she finished her make up.

"Well, I can live with that" Kyoko replied, feeling a bit disappointed. Kotonami Kanae was the first girl around her age, who has been somewhat kind to her. Kyoko sighed. _Well, maybe we can still be friendly to each other. That would be nice._ "Thank you for helping Kotonami-san" She stood up and bowed.

"Moo, don't call me that, I am not some old hag!" girl protested "I'm just Kanae!"

"Well, then call me Kyoko" she smiled at her leper "Well, I will be going now, thank you, once again!" and with that she left the staff room and went into the dimly lit lounge.

Ren walked into a familiar room, enjoying the soft music and intoxicating smell, he looked around and quickly spotted Takenori walking in his direction.

"Tsuruga Ren, just the man that my ladies would love to see here! How have you been? What can I do for you today?" He asked, happy to see, such an important person in his host club. He knew him very well and also knew that he could now expect a lot of cash to flow into his pockets.

"Same old, same old. Lot's of work and, unfortunately, lots of Love lecturing from Takarada, well, you know him" He smiled at the man, upholding the conversation. He then again saw the bright orange hair _I swear it is the same woman I saw earlier today, why does she look so familiar._ Deep in his though he hasn't heard what Sawara was asking.

"..en, Ren?" Sawara asked "Did somebody catch your eye?" he smiled slyly, it was rare for a woman to interest infamous Tsuruga Ren so much.

"Yeah, you could say so" Ren answered absent-mindedly, then turned back to face Sawara and continued "I'll have the usual and that redhead in my booth" He said pointing at the familiar woman.

"I'll send her there immediately, it was nice to see you" Sawara waved him goodbye and went to get Kyoko, while Ren walked to his usual place.

It was a secluded booth, with lush sofas and exquisite curtains that hid him from the rest of the club. Soon a pretty waitress brought him a bottle of Johnnie Walker Blue Label and faceted glass for him; and Moёt Chandon champagne and flute for a girl, who was about to join him. He treated his women well and was more than happy to spend some money to court them nicely. The waitress left and seconds later another one brought him his hookah and left him alone to relax. He idly pulled fruity vapor into his lungs, keeping it there and feeling the slight dizziness and relaxation hit him. He released white clouds of vapor, throwing his head back to rest on the back of the sofa. He closed his eyes, finally feeling relaxed, than he heard curtains moving and somebody came in.

 **So I hope, that you have liked it. Please review and let me know what you liked and what you didn't, it will really help me to make the story better. Also I cannot promise anything about updates, but I have planned the plot-line in quite a detail for the next few chapters, so there will not be another disappearance as such. Although I will probably release only maybe 1 or 2 chapters before the end of June, as I have to prepare for my A2 exams** **J**


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